On March 16, 2026, the CAFRAD headquarters in Rabat will host a high-level institutional conference dedicated to the theme: “Public Health in Africa and the Governance of Health Systems”.

Organized within the framework of the African Governance Youth Lab (AGYL) program, this meeting is the result of a strategic partnership between CAFRAD and the Moroccan Elite of Young Leaders (EMJL). It brought together nearly 100 young participants, students and professionals, to discuss the key structural challenges of health governance in Africa.

A Strategic Reflection on the Challenges of African Health Systems

Faced with inequalities in access to care, demographic pressure, human resource shortages, and recurring health crises, the issue of governance has emerged as a central lever for transforming African health systems.

The discussions will highlight that healthcare performance depends not only on available medical resources, but also on the quality of public governance, administrative organization, institutional coordination, and the capacity of states to implement sustainable structural reforms.

Institutional and Academic Mobilization

The opening address of this conference will be given by the Director General of CAFRAD, Dr. Coffi Dieudonné Assouvi, followed by an address from the President of EMJL, Mr. Amine Benamar.

The thematic panel will bring together public health experts, academics, and professionals involved in strategic thinking on health policies. Presentations will focus on:

• The structural challenges of African health systems;
• The role of public governance in improving healthcare performance;
• The prospects for digitalizing the health sector;
• The contribution of young professionals to strategic thinking.

 Engaged Pan-African Youth

The target audience includes medical, pharmacy, and health sciences students, young doctors, public administration students, and young nationals of CAFRAD member states residing in Morocco.

This mobilization demonstrates a strong commitment to involving Pan-African youth in developing innovative solutions tailored to the realities of the continent.

Concrete Results and Sustainable Momentum

Expected outcomes include:

• Increased awareness of health governance issues;
• Strengthened dialogue between institutions and young professionals;
• Identification of a core group of young people engaged in the AGYL program;
• Development of a summary of recommendations arising from the discussions.

Beyond the conference, this initiative is part of a broader strategy to establish the CAFRAD–EMJL partnership as a structuring framework for training a new generation of African leaders who are aware of governance challenges and capable of developing innovative solutions for the future of health systems in Africa.